Brains & Bladders

Twice today my friend Ray Atkins has managed to tease long-forgotten memories, some 65 and 70 years old, out of the ancient neural connections of my septuagenarian brain.

First he posted this picture to Facebook with a simple label:

A quarter for your thoughts... 

 

His two-bits of brains was enough.

Raymond Atkins is a fine novelist and essayist who, between laughs, has been known to sneak in a few thoughts on weighty matters --- democracy, human decency, the meaning of life. But his first literary contribution to my life today was to remind me of pork brains.

So, lest that recovered neural connection disappear again, I wrote it down:

First, brains.

I’ve never been able to eat brains.

I first heard of pork brains as a culinary treat when I was thirteen years old, working at the Red Dot Supermarket in Ellijay, Georgia—bagging groceries, putting eggs in cartons, and stocking shelves.

There was a fellow who showed up like clockwork in a beat-up pickup with his large wife and several miniature versions of himself for his monthly provisions. And part of those provisions was always a whole case of canned pork brains.

 

He was short, heavy, and bald. I thought he looked downright porcine.

Now, even then I knew there could be no real connection between his diet and his appearance—except maybe that second adjective.

But still, I’ve never been able to eat brains.

Maybe you think Ray had done enough for one day.

Nope.

Later he turned his formidable literary talents to the subject of inflation, and right off I got sidetracked by his scholarly observation:

The word “inflation” comes from the Latin word “inflāre.” Its original meaning referred to the filling of a pig’s bladder with air, although why the ancient Romans felt the need to blow up pig’s bladders with air has been lost to antiquity.

Democracy. Human decency. The meaning of life.

Pig bladders.

And just like that, Ray teased out another image —this one even older and considerably hazier.

So I wrote it down too so that future generations can enjoy the image:

Now, bladders.

Well, Ray has once again tickled out of my cranial folds and wrinkles a long-forgotten, hazy image—a hog bladder.

When I was about eight or nine, my buddy Herbert Leach and I attended the slaughter of a gigantic hog not far from our parsonage on South Ninth Street in Griffin, Georgia.

At some point in the process, the monster was lying on the ground—rather than suspended from the tree limb as he had been, or would be—and the more experienced Herbert demonstrated, to my amazement, that one could produce a prodigious fountain by pressing one's shoe against the hog's bladder.

That elicited a reprimand from the adults nearby, but the experience was well worth it.

So there you go, Ray.

A day's work for a distinguished Southern man of letters: from the recesses of my aging brain you have hoisted a case of pork brains and a hog bladder.

Literature is a wonderful thing.

Lordy, what'll you post tomorrow?

 

Pig bladders for sale in Peking, 1917-1919.

Our Outdoor Journal (Updated July 27, 2026)

Our Outdoor Journal

A Record of Discovery from Our Walks Together

by GrandShaw & the Carlin Girls

Some of the living things we have discovered during our walks in and around Vista,

California. We'll continue to update this journal as we make new discoveries—not only

of plants and animals, but also of interesting rocks, fossils, insects, birds, history,

geology, weather, and whatever else catches our curiosity along the trail. After all,

every walk has the potential to become an adventure.

Mammals

• Coyote (Canis latrans) – Native to California. First identified by Clementine, who

recognized it immediately after Grandshaw first mistook it for a loose dog.

• Desert Cottontail (Sylvilagus audubonii) – Common native rabbit of southern

California, observed at Rancho Guajome Adobe.

Birds

American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos)
Observed along Anza Avenue, Vista, California. A noisy group of crows was calling loudly. We suspected they might be mobbing a hawk or owl, although we neither saw nor heard another species.
Date: July 27, 2026

Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura)
Seen at Alta Vista Botanical Garden, Vista, California.
Date: July 27, 2026

---

Amphibians

Tadpoles (species undetermined)

Observed in the small creek that flows beside the Wiivay Nature Trail at Alta Vista Botanical Garden. At this stage they could not be identified to species.

Reptiles

• Western Fence Lizard (Sceloporus occidentalis) – The familiar 'blue-belly' of

California.

• Red-eared Slider (Trachemys scripta elegans) – Native to the southeastern United

States but now established around the world through the pet trade.

Fish

• Western Mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis) – Introduced into California for mosquito

control.

Insects

• Western Honeybee (Apis mellifera) – Discovered by Clementine in a thriving feral

colony nesting inside a hollow palm stump.

• Blister Beetle (Family Meloidae) – Species uncertain. Large black beetle found at

Rancho Guajome Adobe.

• South American Palm Weevil (Rhynchophorus palmarum) (evidence) – Numerous

dead Canary Island Date Palms throughout Vista are consistent with infestation by this

invasive species.

Trees & Shrubs

• Blue Jacaranda (Jacaranda mimosifolia)

• Bottlebrush (Melaleuca viminalis)

• Macadamia (Macadamia integrifolia or hybrid)

• Indian Laurel Fig (Ficus microcarpa)

• Hong Kong Orchid Tree (Bauhinia Å~ blakeana)

• Canary Island Date Palm (Phoenix canariensis)

Wildflowers & Other Plants

• Sacred Datura (Datura wrightii) – also known as Jimsonweed or Sacred Thornapple.

• Pink Evening Primrose (Oenothera speciosa) – Pointed out by Clementine.

• Field Bindweed (Convolvulus arvensis)

• Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum, probably) – Educational planting at Alta Vista Botanical

Garden.

History & Human Discoveries

• Wiivay Trail Bedrock Mortars – Explored by Grandshaw, Clementine, and Ruth on July

22. Granite mortars worn smooth by generations of Luise.o people grinding acorns and

seeds.

• Rancho Guajome Adobe – Built in 1852, one of California's finest surviving

Mexican-era adobe ranch houses, preserving the history of the Luise.o people and

early California ranch life.

Favorite Discoveries

• Honeybee colony hidden inside a palm stump—first spotted by Clementine.

• Coyote quietly sharing the trail—correctly identified by Clementine.

• Western Fence Lizard basking among tree roots.

• Macadamia nuts beneath a mature tree.

• Learning that the 'fruit' of an Indian Laurel Fig is actually a syconium.

• Ancient Luise.o bedrock mortars on the Wiivay Trail and at Rancho Guajome Adobe.

Questions We Still Have

• What species of blister beetle did we find?

• What birds will we add to our journal?

• What other stories of geology and history are waiting along the trail?

What We Saw Walking to Australia & Back

This morning Clementine and I decided to walk to Australia.

Gamma (Clementine's other grandmother) volunteers as the caretaker of the Australia section of the Alta Vista Botanical Garden in Vista, California. We love walking through the beautiful Brengle Terrace Park that includes that garden, and also the Moonlight Amphitheater, the community center where Clementine and her sisters all attended pre-K, a wonderful playground, a great disk-golf course, and a Children's garden. 

We made a wonderful discovery when we'd barely gotten out of Clementine's yard. There in her neighbor Doug's yard sharp-eyed Clementine noticed the home of a very active hive of honeybees in the cavity of a palm tree stump. We can tell this is a well established community of bees with guard bees protecting the entrance and worker bees buzzing in and out going about their chores of collecting nectar and pollen. Here in sunny southern California they can collect those things all year round. 

I suggested Clem reach in and collect us a sample of the honey, but she didn't want to do that. I wonder why.

🐝 Honeybee (Apis mellifera)

Clementine collected a few more macadamia nuts from the edge of Doug's yard where they have fallen from his neighbor's tree. Once the husks have turned brown and they have dried a bit, and you have managed to crack the VERY hard shells, the nuts inside are delicious to us humans, BUT be careful. Macadamia nuts can make your doggies very sick. 

🌰 Macadamia (Macadamia integrifolia or hybrid)

We "collected" several dog friends on this walk, but we didn't take pictures of all of them.  On the sidewalk across the side street from the Mexican Restaurant we met a human tending three days. We enjoyed meeting her and her dogs, Holly, Boo, and Sally. (Nom picture)

Just as we got to the Brengle Terrace trail we met Tango, a large black mixed breed dog with his human.(No picture) 

As  we neared Brengle Terrace park we began to see these large flowers. Sometimes called Jimsonweed, every part of this plant is poisonous, so be careful! The flowers open in late afternoon or evening and stay open through the night. They are pollinated by hawk moths (sphinx moths). 

🤍 Sacred Datura or Jimsonweed (Datura wrightii)

As we climbed the trail toward the park Clem took my picture MANY times. I really wasn't tired yet, but I pretended to be.

The Blue Jacaranda tree is a native of Argentina and Bolivia, but since the 1800s it has become so common it southern California and many probably assume it is native. The camera does not do it justice. The blue/violet color of the flower clusters is almost startling. 

🌳 Blue Jacaranda (Jacaranda mimosifolia)

Coco (left) and Chuck were very friendly and their human enjoyed telling us about them. They are both rescue dogs and were given new names by their new human.

Near the playground we met a lady sitting in the grass with her friendly dog, Sunny. (No picture)

Clementine suggested we climb up the grassy hill toward the Alta Vista Botanical Garden. It is VERY steep.

On the side of the hill we stopped to examine this Pink Evening Primrose still open while several others had already closed. It is native to south central states but has become naturalized in California.

Pink Evening Primrose (Oenothera speciosa)

Though it's a pretty little thing it is also a persistent pest to many farmers. Imported from Eurasia it is a tenacious survivor with roots radiating in every direction as much as ten feet. It can regenerate from tiny pieces of root and the doggone seeds can stay viable for a decade!

🤍 Field Bindweed (Convolvulus arvensis)

The fairy garden at "Australia"

One of the things I love about Vista, California is that there is a LOT of public art. Some of it is very quirky.

I like this patio so we took a picture. This would fit nicely in my backyard.

Has something got GrandShaw's hand!?

My old friends the red-eared turtle and Mosquitofish..

More public art

Clementine and her family won second place in the scarecrow contest.

We saw these Western Fence Lizards everywhere.

Sissy & Molly

After we left the park we had a great time inventing a silly poem about the dogs we had met. By the time we got to the house it was pretty well complete.

Dogs At The Park

by Clementine & Grandshaw, July 27, 2026

Sissy and Molly
and Holly and Boo

went to the park
to see what they could do.

They played on the slide.

They played on the swing.

Before they were done
they played on everything

They met a new friend
whose name was Tango.

So they offered him some
of their frozen mango.

Another new friend
 was named Sunny

They walked throiugh the grass
and frightened a bunny.

They played in the grass.

They rolled in the clover.

And before they knew it
the day was over.